"What has gotten into her?"
"Hehe... Isn't it obvious?"
"Yeah... She's going to receive a good scolding from the CEO."
"You're right, coming to work at this hour... Hmph, she might even get fired."
"Well, I hope so... heard that the news about the CEO's marriage was fake."
"Yeah... It was instantly taken down that day."
"Hmph... She's still our enemy... We should be wary of her."
The employees who had gotten out of their shock instantly started whispering among themselves as their eyes lingered on the closed elevator door.
_____
When Clara reached the department the first thing she did was to go to the manager's office.
After knocking at the door, she heard the man's voice from inside and quickly opened the door then rushed inside while trying to catch her breath.
"G..Good morning Mr. Long," she said rapidly while watching the man's anxious expression.
The manager who had gotten out of his shock quickly nodded and put on an excited expression. He couldn't believe the text he got from the CEO last night.
"Mr. Long, I'm so sorry... didn't know I have to take so long on the trip, can you please forgive me?." Clara started rapidly with a somber look and watched as the man stood up and walked toward her.
"It's nothing Clara, you're welcome back... Don't worry, I hope you had a good time in City H." The manager beamed while trying to sniff back his imaginary tears.
Clara's expression instantly brightened up and she quickly muttered, "Thank you... thank you so much, Mr. Long, I promise to be very diligent from now."
The manager nodded while sighing inside then said, "You should go back to your cubicle, everything is ready__ Oh, I mean, it is very cleaned."
"Okay, thanks again, Mr. Long." Clara quickly nodded and thanked the man again with a huge grin then skipped out of the office and then toward her cubicle.
The manager sighed again and shook his head while staring at the closed door. He couldn't believe such a beautiful girl could come up with a mental illness. It is no wonder the CEO doesn't want to work with her anymore.
_____
Clara walked back to her cubicle happily and just as the manager said, it was very clean and she even noticed that her computer was changed to a new one.
She sighed happily and sat down on the swivel chair with a huge grin then turned on the computer after dropping her bag on the table.
A small frown settled on her forehead after some minutes as she heard footsteps rushing toward her cubicle.
"Clara, what are you doing here?"
"What happened...?"
"Did the CEO finally fired you?"
"Hehe, I knew this would eventually happen."
"Clara, we're so happy that you're back."
"Yes, we really missed you... Hehe."
Clara's frowned deepened as she glanced between her colleagues with a confused expression. What are they talking about? And why would the CEO fire her?
Her gaze landed on Derek who was staring calmly at her with a slight smile and she quickly stood up and walked to him.
"Clara, answer us... Why did the CEO fire you?" One of the employees asked again and Clara gazed at them confusedly then turned to Derek.
"Derek, what are they talking about..." She asked with furrowed brows. As far as she knew, the CEO never came to the company and she haven't seen him before.
"Huh?" Derek also frowned and he was about to answer her question when the manager suddenly barged into the place with an anxious expression.
"All of you... Quick quick follow me, there's an urgent meeting from all the department," Mr. Long said anxiously then glanced at Clara and sighed in relief. These stupid employees are going to put him in trouble.
All the employees stared at each other confusedly, including Clara and they all followed the manager out, toward the elevator which took them to the third floor of the company as they entered group by group.
They soon arrived at the third floor where the HR department and also the general conference room were located.
Walking inside the conference room, Clara's jaw dropped and she marveled at how enormous the place was as her eyes darted to the many other employees who were also flooding inside.
Derek who was standing beside her chuckled at her dumbfounded expression. "Clara, let's find a seat before the place becomes filled up."
"Oh, okay." Clara nodded and quickly followed him then they located a seat among the countless seats, lined up in long rows and columns inside the hall.
The manager was right. seems like all the employees in the company are here. Clara's eyes widened with each second as she wondered what is going on.
Her gaze landed on the stage which was very far from where they were sitting and she could see Mr. Long together with several other older men who she made out to be all the departments' managers.
"What announcement do you think they're going to make now?"
"If I could recall, the last time we were all summoned here was three years ago."
"Yes, when the company was newly launched..."
"And everyone was warned not to fall for the CEO."
The employees started whispering among themselves and soon the hall had become very noisy that you could barely hear what the person sitting beside you is saying to you.
Clara's eyes wandered dazedly around the place which is now filled to the brim with all the employees in the company and she felt like her eardrums could explode at any moment.
A small gasp suddenly escaped her lips when she felt two palms on her ears and her eyes darted to Derek whose attention had not left her. She could see him move his lips, probably saying something to her which she couldn't hear amidst all the noises that kept increasing in the place.
Smiling back at him, her attention was diverted to the stage again and an enormous voice suddenly sounded from nowhere, probably from the hidden speakers and she sighed in relief seeing that the employees had started quieting down.